


Eternatus

by ThatMasterOnline



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:41:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25665322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatMasterOnline/pseuds/ThatMasterOnline
Summary: A look at the Eternatus battle from Leon's point of view, exploring the injury that left Leon "out cold and hurt pretty badly".
Comments: 3
Kudos: 15





	Eternatus

"Charizard and the rest of my champion team members have really worn Eternatus down. Now if I can simply catch it in a Poke Ball, we should be able to get this madness under control. Then everything will be back to normal. So watch this! It's going to be a real champion catch!"

He spoke with more confidence than he truly felt. The battle with Eternatus had been hard, but his little brother and his friend were just kids. They didn't need to know how difficult it had been. That would ruin their impression of the unbeatable champion, and Leon simply couldn't bear to let the magic end, even at a time like this. Hop and his friend were incredible trainers, but he wished they hadn't come. If even he was having trouble...they wouldn't fare well, and Leon, above all else, had to protect them. They were children, and children, no matter how strong, had no business facing down pokemon that could destroy the entire Galar region. Still, he had done most of the heavy lifting, all that was left was to catch it.

Eternatus roared, but Leon threw a pokeball hard, and Eternatus was sealed inside. Hop cheered as the pokeball landed on the ground, but Leon flung out a hand to silence him and keep him back. It wasn't over until the pokemon was truly captured, and they were still a long way from that. The pokeball shuddered once...

And Leon knew.

He threw a panicked glance at Charizard, who understood and turned to shield the children behind him as the pokeball burst open with a force that hit him like a ton of bricks and sent him to his knees. He coughed, panting and too weak to even stand as Eternatus turned its rampage on his own brother. He wanted to help, to protect Hop, but his body was aching and it took more strength than he had to even keep one had on the ground and hold himself up. He knew he wouldn't be able to do anything, Eternatus's forceful escape from the pokeball had taken too much out of him. He cursed his failure to protect the children, but he had no strength left in his body to do anything about it. His energy exhausted he slumped to the side, and Charizard pulled him away from the battle, protecting him from further harm.

Who would have thought that his little brother's friend would have grown into such a splendid trainer? Leon, barely able to even keep his eyes open, watched weakly from the sidelines as they fought back Eternatus's attacks blow for blow, and he dared to breathe a sigh of relief as he watched Eternatus give something like a groan and fall to the ground, creating a shockwave that rattled the area. Finally, it was over, and Leon was ashamed that he had been weak, that it had been up to children to stop this pokemon when it should have been him, the unbeatable champion. Suddenly a blinding flash lit up the area, causing Leon to groan and close his eyes, and when he opened them he saw with palpable relief that Hop's friend, despite having been nearly underneath the pokemon when it collapsed, was still standing and unharmed. The pokemon flew up into the sky, and then the familiar storm of a den in the wild area formed. Leon watched as bits of debris floated up into the air, and he looked up and saw Eternatus, enormous and looming, the sort of creature that could easily blot out the sun and prompt so many legends of skies turning black.

Eternatus had changed to become something like a claw, and for a heart-stopping moment Leon feared it would simply grab the offending children and crush them. Of course no such thing happened, but the children were still in danger, and Hop stepped up to support his friend this time. Leon, for a moment, hoped they would manage to defeat Eternatus together, but then he heard something that sounded more like a funeral bell to his ears than his brother's voice.

"What? I can't use any moves!"

Can't use any moves. They had pokemon, but Hop and his friend were defenseless, and Leon was too weak to do anything. If they couldn't use any moves, they were all but helpless, and Eternatus would...

"Hop...Run..." He tried to call, but his words were lost to the storm. Hop and his friend tried again, but to no avail. Of course they would stay and try to fight. Even if they were children, they understood that they were now the last line of defense between Eternatus and the destruction of the Galar region. 

"I forgot!" Hop suddenly cried, "We found the sword and shield in the Slumbering Weald!" Sword? Shield? Leon wondered if he'd hit his head, and he wondered when these two children had found time to journey into the Slumbering Weald for something to help them.

"Use that sword! It might be old and rusted, but there's got to be some use to it!" And as he spoke, Hop pulled out an old, rusted shield. Leon almost laughed, would have laughed if the situation hadn't been so dire. What could that little shield do? But then, almost miraculously, two brightly-coloured pokemon appeared to protect Hop and his friend. Leon had never seen them before, but there they were nonetheless, standing majestic and proud, protecting his little brother when he couldn't. The two pokemon roared, and then it seemed that the tide had shifted. Hop and his friend could use their moves again. It was a long and arduous battle, but eventually Hop and his friend, with the help of the two mysterious pokemon, were able to whittle down Eternatus's health. Finally, Hop's friend captured Eternatus in a pokeball. The pokeball clicked and sat still, and Hop's friend simply pocketed it as though it were any old Rookidee.

As Leon suspected, the sky cleared the moment Eternatus had been captured, and he breathed a sigh of relief, letting his body relax. Hop was safe. His friend was safe. The Galar region was safe. He could breathe. He closed his eyes, sending up a desperate thanks to the pokemon that two of the most precious things in the world to him had survived this awful ordeal. The pokemon seemed to have vanished. At the end of the day, the only casualty had been him, and if that meant the safety of two children he cared deeply for, he was alright with that. He sighed, his body worn out from the force of the blow it had taken, mind starting to wander.

"The shaking has stopped, so I can only imagine Eternatus has been captured. It is a slight deviation from the original plan, but...Leon?" Footsteps coming towards him, and then warmth and a hand on his shoulder as Chairman Rose knelt down next to him.

"Leon...I...I never imagined you could be defeated...If I had known..."

"Hey! Get away from my brother!" Hop shouted, and Leon fought to open his eyes as Hop ran towards him.

"I don't want to hurt him, Hop. As I said with your friend, from your perspective you must see me as a madman, but I assure you I am not. Although..." Rose's gaze turned from Hop back to Leon, and a small smile appeared on his lips when their eyes met before it slipped and his expression sobered.

"I never meant for you to be hurt, Leon. Believe me when I say I never once, in all my careful calculations, imagined a scenario where you could be defeated. Eternatus has the power to give the Galar region the energy it needs for eternity, all we needed was to catch it. I had a device prepared for that, and I knew that if that device somehow failed, then you would succeed. You were my ultimate backup plan, Leon, I knew you could never fail to subdue Eternatus. I..." His eyes turned sad.

"...I see now that Eternatus's power was too great for me, for anyone, to have tampered with. My goal has been achieved, the Galar region will have power, but...if Eternatus was able to defeat even the unbeatable Leon...I had no place meddling with that kind of power. I...am sorry." He turned to Hop and his friend.

"Let us get him to the Pokemon Center, and then I promise I will turn myself into the proper authorities. Leon...Can you stand?"

It took time, but Chairman Rose helped him to his feet. With one of his arms around Rose's shoulders and Rose's arm around his waist, Leon was gently guided to the Pokemon Center and laid down on a bed. Hop was at his side immediately.

"Lee..." He said, looking helplessly at his brother. What a sight he must be. Leon, Hop's older brother, the undefeated champion, lying pathetically in a bed, having been completely useless against Eternatus despite all his promises to protect the Galar region. Slowly, he reached his hand out and let it drop onto Hop's head.

"I must look a sight now, huh, Hop? Sorry...Guess I'm not as great as I thought..."

"Don't...Don't say that!" Hop reassured him, "You took a blast from that thing full force! It's a miracle you're even alive! You...You took it at full force to protect me...That...That takes more strength than being a strong pokemon trainer, definitely!" Leon smiled, and his eyes closed. 

"Thank you, Hop..." Leon felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Come on now, Hop. You and your friend have done quite enough. You saved the Galar region, and I owe you my thanks. Now, let's all go to the hotel. I'm going to make sure you and your friend are provided for, for as long as is takes your brother to recover, and then I'm going to the authorities." Rose sighed. "I...It seems only right that I turn myself in. I...I miscalculated. The damage I almost did...Well, I hope someday I can earn the peoples' forgiveness. But more than that, your forgiveness, and especially Leon's. Please believe me when I say I never, ever meant for him - for anyone - to get hurt. I thought for sure Leon would stop Eternatus with no trouble. If...If you have time, later. Please come by my cell. I would love to hear all about how you two stopped Eternatus when Leon failed. I'm sure it's quite a thrilling tale." Hop only grumbled, folding his arms and looking away. Leon sighed. Hop and his friend would be alright. No matter what he had done, Rose was a man of honour, he wouldn't leave two children out cold and alone on the streets. He could rest. And then, in three days' time...He, and Hop, and his friend, and all of the gym challengers who had made it this far...would have one last series of champion battles to determine who would be the champion of the Galar region.


End file.
